CommodityHQ.com provides weekly information about any material impact of a major economic, corporate and/or geopolitical event on the global commodities market. The report also analyzes the weekly change in prices of the major commodity futures and commodity focused ETFs as a result of market changing events and trends. This report covers events and analysis for the weeks ranging May 8 to May 15.
- Crude and Brent oil shot higher this week as an extension to the OPEC production cut was backed by Saudi Arabia and Russia.
- Speculation in cotton helped lift prices to their highest level since 2014.
- Gold prices rose on a weaker dollar and investor concerns surrounding possible North Korean military activity.
- Check out our previous week’s article to keep up with the trends in the commodities space.
Weekly Market Wrap-up
Energy – Oil rose sharply this week as the production cut extension deal was supported by Saudi Arabia and Russia, while natural gas prices fell on warmer weather expectations.
- Oil – Both crude oil and Brent oil jumped up this week to $49.18 and $52.18 respectively after Saudi Arabia and Russia both agreed to back the production cut extension another nine months. Check out here to learn how oil is priced in the market.
- Natural Gas – Natural gas prices dropped to $3.348 per million British thermal units after previous gains as warmer weather forecasts damped investor expectations.
- Coal – China and India announced that they will be using coal for the foreseeable future despite climate concerns and a shift towards greener energy sources.
Metals – A record rise for Chinese steel production in April caused investors to worry about a global supply glut, hurting prices.
- Precious Metals – A weaker dollar and concerns surrounding North Korean military activities helped lift gold prices to $1,233.50 a troy ounce.
- Other – LME copper fell to $5,580 a tonne on worries that China’s growth may be slowing down. Tighter capital markets also helped propagate a sell-off in the metal.
Grains – Wheat prices dropped to $4.23 per bushel primarily on chart-driven selling activity and reports of abundant global supply.
- Corn and Soybeans – Fund bearishness for corn picked up this week with several funds adding to their net short positions, dragging down corn prices.
Softs – Cotton speculation caused prices to skyrocket to their highest level since 2014 at $83.66 cents per pound.
If you are wondering which commodity might be right for you, check out our Commodity Investing Database.
Weekly Movement Across Commodity Futures
For this week, we analyzed all commodities by weekly performance and listed the top three performers by weekly percentage gain. All commodities were taken into account and analyzed from a performance perspective only to find the top three.
| Commodity | Weekly Gain (%) | Contract Expiration | Contract Price (as of May 15) | 52-Week Price Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Cotton | 8.71% | 07/17/17 | $83.66 | $60.61 - $87.18 |
| Crude Oil | 7.17% | 06/17/17 | $49.18 | $39.19 - $55.24 |
| Brent Oil | 7.06% | 07/17/17 | $52.18 | $41.51 - $58.37 |
Commodities pulled a 180-degree performance this week from last, with a number of big winners posting gains of 7% and higher. News that Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed to a nine-month extension of the OPEC production cut helped lift prices while cotton rose on bullish speculation.
Weekly Commodity ETF Movers
For ETF investors, we tracked the top three biggest gainers and top three biggest losers for the past week. Not included are ETNs, which behave differently than ETFs, as well as leveraged ETFs, which may not be suitable for some investors. Some ETFs that have less than one year on the market have been excluded due to lack of long-term data.
Check out a full list of commodity ETFs on ETFdb.com here.
Top Three ETF Winners This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of May 15) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNG | United States Natural Gas Fund | Natural gas | $414.26 | $7.76 | 5.58% | -16.92% | 1.27% |
| BNO | United States Brent Oil Fund | Brent oil | $109.10 | $13.93 | 5.21% | -11.16% | 0.90% |
| USO | United States Oil Fund | Crude oil | $3,091.69 | $10.17 | 5.17% | -13.23% | 0.77% |
Oil ETFs rose this week on the back of an extension to the OPEC production cut supported by both Saudi Arabia and Russia while natural gas led the way from earlier gains in the week.
Top Three ETF Losers This Week
| ETF Ticker | ETF Name | Commodity Category | Assets ($ million) | NAV (as of May 15) | Return (weekly %) | Return (YTD %) | Expense Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WEAT | The Teucrium Wheat Fund | Wheat | $66.57 | $6.73 | -1.90% | -2.18% | 1.00% |
| PALL | ETFS Physical Palladium Shares ETF | Palladium | $207.70 | $76.25 | -1.68% | 16.93% | 0.60% |
| DBA | PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund | Agriculture | $717.53 | $20.02 | -0.40% | 0.25% | 0.85% |
WEAT was the week’s biggest commodity-based ETF loser after reports that the global supply was abundant while palladium and broad agriculture ETFs fell on profit taking.
We provide this report on a weekly basis. Be sure to check our News section to remain updated on the latest happenings in the commodity space.
